Music breaking barriers

NEKROSKOP – Baptized in Formalin

Nekroskop is a Crust/ Grind/ Black project from Malmö/Lund, Sweden, that started making noise during the early half of 2012. Now, a little more than a year since the band’s reception, the band just presented their first ever recording, the “Baptized in Formalin” EP which was released in May through Goregeous Productions. What follows is an attemp to describe this swedish blackened death armageddon.

After a lightning fast drum intro, the grind induced ‘Coffinsplitter’ presents itself with razor sharp riffing, providing a wicked start that could not have been more appropriate for such an album. What is quite notable from the very beginning is the bass guitar that is highly present in the mix aggrandizing the band’s sound, a fact particularly present during some ‘open chord’ sections of the songs. ’Graveyard Yoga’ is equally chaotic and energetic, although the first fractions of diversity in NEKROSKOP’s raw and unpolished music make their circumspect appearance. The riffs are wavering from frantic surgical thrash parts to mid-paced palm-muted ones that, in conjuction with Martin Schönherr’s brainsick vocals, who is purging his lungs inside-out the black metal way (instead of utilizing death metal growls), they further guarrantee for quite a disordered result. ‘Parasite’ features some clearly punk influenced verses that are soon left at the mercy of Åsa Hagström’s unmercyful production of noisy riffs. This four track EP, however, is not as one-dimentional as it may seem at one’s very first listen. There are clearly a good number of varied elements be them, small lead parts, melodic in all their dissonance, dark and sinister that are so neatly ingained in the songs such as ‘Parasite’ and the devouring ‘Livor Mortis’.

All in all, NEKROSKOP is a rather welcome dose of adrenaline to the listener, away from the overly sophisticated turn of recent music. Keeping in mind that the band is only a year old, the outcome of this swedish gang is quite outstanding to say the least. ‘Baptized in Formalin’ is an honest reminder of how metal should sound like, and that is fast, brutal and straight to the point. Nothing sums up the meaning of this th